


Juxtaposition

by 10k_au



Category: Z Nation (TV)
Genre: Drug Use, F/M, Seizures, blend!10k, boosters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-07
Updated: 2016-11-07
Packaged: 2018-08-29 16:23:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8497039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/10k_au/pseuds/10k_au
Summary: 10k finds his way back to the group, reader gets to know him, as well as slowly figuring out what's going on with his booster shots and seizures.





	

The camp is quiet. Warren is sharpening her blade in front of the fire, Hector is sat beside her, staring into the flames. You imagine that he’s thinking about his sins. That’s normally what he tells you when you ask, so you’ve stopped asking. Addy is curled into a ball asleep next to you, her red hair falling gently into her eyes. Doc is on watch somewhere and you have no clue where Sun has disappeared off to, but if Warren’s cool, you’re cool.

“Where do we go next?” you ask, meeting her gaze across the flickering flames. She exhales deeply and shakes her head.

“I don’t know anymore, Honey” she replies, going back to running the rock along her blunted machete. “We just gotta have hope, and keep going” You look down into your lap, watching the light cast dancing patterns onto your legs, wondering whether if you watched them for long enough that they would start to make sense.

“Warren!”

It sounds like Doc, somewhere in the woods. Your head snaps to the direction that it had come from and then you look back to Roberta, eyes wide as she gets to her feet, swinging her blade in her hand. She doesn’t move at first, just stands there, knees slightly bent, fists tight. He calls again and she jumps into action, dashing away. You look around the group, Hector is getting up, confusion spread across his features. Addy is stirring, but still not fully awake. After a second of thought, you run into the woods after Warren, pulling your pistol out of its holster.

When you catch up with her, she’s stood opposite Doc, who has a strange look on his face that you can’t quite tell whether is good or bad. He has someone propped up on his shoulder, but you can’t quite make out who it is, a tall thin body, dark hair on his head as it lolls forward, hiding his face. Doc is muttering, struggling to support the boy’s weight.

“Warren? Is everything okay?” you call. She turns, lifting her chin to beckon you over. The boy lifts his head, his sharp features are bruised and bloodied, eyes wide. You give him a slight smile and then turn to your leader, who looks worried. She pats you on the shoulder once.

“This is 10k” She tells you, “We lost him a while back before you joined the group.” You look at him again. He seems to be in pain, eyes almost rolling into the back of his head, but he returns your smile, trying to hold himself a little more.

“Can you take him back to camp?” She adds, sliding her machete into its sheath. “Doc and I will just do a quick brush of the area, make sure whoever brought him back to us isn’t still around.” You nod and step forward, holding out an arm and letting Doc tip him gently into your grasp. He’s heavy and you stumble before managing to regain your balance. As you make your way back to camp, he groans a little.

“Thank you” he breathes, turning his face to look at you. You smiled again, propping him up a little as he slips down and off of your shoulder. “For helping me”

“That’s okay, a friend of the Group is a friend of mine.”

He chuckles a little and then gasps as it hurts him to laugh. You look down his body to his hand resting on his side, blood seeping between his fingers. At first glance you’d guess that he’d been shot at some point, probably recently unless there was some kind of infection. There’s silence for a moment and then he pipes up again.

“What’s your name?”

“y/n” you reply, getting the urge to reach down and put your hand over his on his wound. But you don’t, instead you plant your hand on your hip to steady yourself. “Not exactly 10k, I know, but it’s a name.”

“It’s a great name” he manages, as the camp comes into view. You almost blush, and you’re not sure why, maybe it’s the sincerity that comes across in his voice.

“10k!?” Addy runs across the opening, bundling into you, arms going around 10k’s neck. “We thought we’d never see you again.” You can’t see her face, but you can hear tears in her tone as she hangs onto him.

“Hello Ad” he whispers, his free arm going around her too. You wonder if there’s some kind of history between them from the way they’re holding each other. You’re shocked by the thought, brought on by a twang of unexpected jealousy.

“What happened to you?”

“Can we talk in the morning?” he asks as she pulls away. “Every part of my body feels like it’s about to give up.”

“yeah sure, hon” Addy pulls him across to the fire, helping him lay down, carefully stroking his hair. You stand for a moment, frozen to the spot, unable to make yourself follow them over to where they were sitting. When you finally walk, you move around to the other side of the fire, making eye contact with Hector who raises his eyebrows at you, perhaps asking whether you’re okay. You nod at him and sit down, crossing your legs. You try to stay up, to wait for Warren and Doc to get back and to know that everything was okay. But at some point, which you’re too tired to remember, you lay down and fall into disturbed dreams.

You dream of a large warehouse, full of people. A friend who had to leave too soon. Zombies coming from every direction, no escape. You shiver and jump in your sleep, legs kicking out and whimpers escaping your throat.

In the pale light of the morning and the smoking fire wood, you shuffle, waking up slowly. You’re immediately aware that something is different. A dark jacket is draped over your shoulder, covering your torso. It smells of pine and a little like blood. With a frown you shift, sitting up a little by pulling yourself up onto your elbow. It’s only then that you notice what else is different. An arm is over you, securing the jacket to your body. 10k is lying next to you, out cold. You stare at him for a second, thoughts ticking over in your head.

“He moved halfway through the night” Says Addy, grinning at you from a few metres away. She’s packing some things into a bag, obviously getting ready for the group to move.

“Why?” you ask, sleep making your voice thick. Addy shrugs, something that you’ve noticed that she does a lot.

“You were crying out on your sleep, fidgeting like you had a fever.” She stops, shaking her head. “Looks like he’s the only one who has a fever… the fever of looooove”

Your cheeks dip a deep red, and you throw 10k’s arm off of you. Surprisingly he doesn’t wake, he just lays there, eyes flickering behind his lids. You slip the jacket off of your arm and bring your knees into your chest, regarding him carefully.

“Don’t act like there’s not a spark there, kid” chuckles Doc, appearing to the left of your vision. “Next house we get, you two can share a room.” Your head is a mess of relief that Doc and Warren are back and safe, and embarrassment at the speedy evaluation of you and 10k.

“Leave them alone!” Warren exclaims, passing across the camp. “They’ll figure out their romantic spark between themselves” Her face melts into a smirk, winking at you as she picks up the bag that Addy had been packing. “But you do need to wake him up” she adds, pointing at you. “We’re moving in ten.”

With a sign you got to your knees and shook 10k’s shoulder gently. He didn’t react, so deep in a place that he almost seemed unreachable.

“10k?” you say, shaking him harder. You push him onto his back, tapping his face with your palm. Addy appears at your side on one knee, resting her arm on her thigh. She watches on with concern as you try over and over to wake him, succeeding only in making his eyelashes flutter a little against his cheeks.

“What’s wrong with him?” she asks, prodding him with her Z-whacker.

“I don’t know.” You mutter. You bring your hand hard across his cheek, slapping his face with a loud crack. A whoosh of air escapes his chest and his eyes snap open. With a sigh of relief, you sit back on your heels, trying not to cry over a boy that you’ve just met.

“You alright, kid?” Doc asks, peering over at his face.

“Doc?” he whispers. “I have to go.” His eyes are wide and vacant, he tries to sit up, but he slips and falls back onto his elbow. Addy slides round and helps him up, rubbing his back gently.

“You have to go where, 10k?” She asks, a frown scrunching up her face.

“Spokane.” He replies with certainty. “I have to go back, I need to get back.”

You fix eyes with Addy, and then your gaze flies to Warren who’s over by the truck. You whistle and wave her over. When she reaches you, shy drops into a squat.

“What’s up?” she asks, inspecting the disorientated 10k. You’re about to explain when he speaks for himself, a slither of anger falling into his voice.

“I have to go. Murphy. I have to,” He starts to shake, eyes not focusing on anything in particular.

“Snap out of it.” Warren hisses, slapping him again, but a lot harder than you had. He shakes the force off and then clambers to his feet, out of Addy’s grasp. You watch along with the other as he stumbles two steps before falling back to the ground. His head hits the ground, eyes finally fixing on somewhere far in the distance. Suddenly his body begins to convulse, foaming at the mouth, he choke a little on his breaths. Doc rushes to his side, trying to hold him still. The air is full of commotion as the others run around, shouting suggestions of how to stop him seizing, whether they had any medications that would help.

You want to jump up and help. But you don’t. Something makes you stay where you are, and your eyes travel to 10k’s bag a couple of yards away, a needle sticking out of the top, hidden partially by the flap.

“What do we do?” shouts Addy.

“I don’t know” comes Doc’s reply.

You just stare, glued to the spot.


End file.
